3 former Perdue campaign aides indicted

Three former campaign aides to North Carolina Gov. Bev Perdue have been indicted, creating a dark cloud around the embattled Democratic governor just as she begins a turbulent reelection campaign.

The News & Observer reports that Perdue's former campaign finance director, western residence director and another associate were charged with obstruction of justice Monday.

The Wake County grand jury alleges that a top aide to Perdue's 2008 campaign allowed a paid staffer to work off the books, violating state law.

Peter Reichard, a Greensboro businessman who served as the Perdue campaign's finance director, was charged with obstruction of justice. Reichard has been a key player in the gubernatorial campaigns of Perdue and her predecessor, Mike Easley. Reichard served as Easley's finance director for his 2000 gubernatorial campaign.

Juleigh Sitton, the former director of the governor's Western Residence, was charged with obstruction of justice and making false reports. She resigned from the position in August and had been making $50,000 a year. She is a Morganton attorney who has long been active in Democratic political campaigns. Perdue campaign finance records show she was reimbursed for roughly $4,500 in campaign expenses in the 2008 election.

Trawick "Buzzy" Stubbs, a New Bern attorney who was a longtime law partner with Perdue's first husband, was charged with obstruction of justice and making false reports. A State Board of Elections investigation in 2010 found he had provided $28,000 worth of flights in 2007 and 2008 that had not been reported. Election laws prohibit giving more than $4,000 in cash or services to a candidate in an election cycle.

North Carolina Democratic Party chairman David Parker stressed that the district attorney has repeatedly stated Perdue is not a focus of the investigation.

"There is no indication that the governor has done anything wrong," said Parker. "The State Board of Elections, in its own earlier investigation, also found no evidence to suggest that Governor Perdue had done anything wrong. It’s time to move on."

But in his next sentence, Parker himself acknowledged that the timing of the indictments makes that virtually impossible.

"Republicans are going to use the district attorney’s action today in every way they can to score cheap political points. They will use it as an excuse to avoid talking about their own record of slashing funding for our schools, colleges and universities. But voters won’t be distracted from the real issues, and they will reject the smear tactics and baseless innuendoes that some Republican leaders will be tempted to resort to as their party’s best chance for victory," he said.

State GOP Chairman Robin Hayes held up the indictments as proof that Perdue failed to follow through on the "fresh start" she promised voters in 2008.

"The nature of the indictments against Gov. Perdue’s campaign reminds voters of disgraced Gov. Mike Easley, an era they thought they had moved past," said Hayes. "We’ve learned some troubling things about Perdue’s views on elections: Her campaign allegedly broke the law with campaign finance filings, she has suggested ‘suspending congressional elections’, and she doesn’t support Voter ID measures that would protect the integrity of our voting process."